Sportsbooks Heating up with the Return of Pacquiao & Mayweather

With boxing’s two biggest stars once again heading to Las Vegas for highly anticipated boxing matches, big casino’s and betting sites are set to see interest return to the boxing sportsbooks. The last time that Floyd Mayweather Jr. (45-0 26 KOs) fought, he saw himself as the betting favorite -270 against the then undefeated light middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, in what was expected to be one of the toughest fights of his career.

The odds shifted with amount of Mexican boxing fans the event drew, and saw things narrowed to -200 at fight time. This was the closest the sportsbooks had a Mayweather bout since his encounter with Oscar De La Hoya in which he was listed as only a -185 betting favorite.

Mayweather Jr. convincingly won his bout with ‘Canelo’ Alvarez via twelve round decision, in what became the richest boxing event in history. The casinos and odds makers seemingly have learned their lesson in regards to Floyd Mayweather Jr’s bouts, as his latest scheduled fight on May 3rd against WBA welterweight champion Marcos Maidana has him listed as a significant favorite.

Mayweather is currently listed as a -1400 favorite at Bovada.lv, and many of the other top online betting sites have a similar line for the bout. Will this bout draw anywhere near the same interest with the bookies with the odds being stacked so high?

The other boxing star that is set to make his return ring is Manny ‘Pacman’ Pacquiao. Not since his fourth encounter with Juan Manuel Marquez — which ended in shocking fashion — has he fought in Las Vegas, and on April 12th he is set meet another familiar opponent, Timothy Bradley.

The last time Bradley and Pacquiao met, ‘Pacman’ was a -450 betting favorite and the fight played out like the odds suggested, as to most fans and to the media’s eyes, he clearly won the bout. However, when the scorecards were read, Manny Pacquiao found himself on the receiving end of a twelve round split decision loss in one of the most controversial decision’s in title fight history.

The second fight is being handled far more cautiously by the sportsbooks, as Pacquiao only opened as a -180 betting favorite. The odds have moved slightly as the fight approaches, with Pacquiao currently being listed at -225 by TopBet.com, but still with Manny Pacquiao’s reputation and the result of the first bout, this would seem to be the much better bet among the two fights.

The first fight saw Pacquiao’s speed and movement keep Bradley on his back foot for most of the fight and win many of the rounds, and while the later rounds were closer due to Pacquiao’s output going down, he did more than enough to earn the victory. In a review of the bout in which five WBO judges re-scored the bout, all judges saw Pacquiao as the clear winner, with scores of 8-4, and 9-3 among them.

So if the big events are what draw your interest to the boxing sportsbooks, these two events could not offer a more stark difference in cash on your dollar. Both boxers are superstars of the sport and supremely gifted, but when it comes to the betting lines it’s not about talent or match ups, it’s about “What have you done lately?” And on paper, Floyd Mayweather Jr. is still undefeated and looking as dominant as ever, while Manny Pacquiao is 1-2 in his last three bouts, and has shown some chips in his armor.

But when it comes to these two fights, if you are looking to lay a few dollars down, and are willing to look beyond the records and look at the fights themselves, the fight that would bring the best return for the risk, is Pacquiao-Bradley II. With both Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. coming back to Las Vegas, the boxing sportsbooks and the betting sites are surely to a big rise in action, as nothing brings out the bets like the superstars of the sport and the big events. Who you are you betting on?